Reading can make you feel less alone and more connected with the world at large. It can open your eyes to issues, successes and challenges that you never dreamed of, and take you to faraway places. Here are the top books all teens should read before they turn 18.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L' Engle
Though this book recently became popular again due to the release of the movie version, the movie is not a replacement for this beautiful story about family and the process of becoming who you truly are through the angle of space and time exploration.
Wonder by R. J. Palacio
Auggie was born with a facial difference that kept him out of school for years. In fifth grade, he discovers what it's like to long for normalcy and also that difference can be the most meaningful teacher.
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
The author shares beautiful poetry that will speak to teenagers about her experience of growing up in the South as an African-American in the 1960s and 1970s. The poems are charged with the themes of self-awareness and identity.
The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
The attractive advice given in this book is perfect for teens going off to college or beginning a new stage of independence. It is a book that can be reread all throughout life without losing its power.
"Tell her," I whispered to my daughter as she pressed her body against mine. She folded my free arm around her little shoulders while I finished loading the groceries onto the conveyer belt.
I smiled at the young cashier who had a butterfly knot tied to her black ponytail. My daughter was right when she'd whispered to me, "Her hair is so pretty."
"Tell her," I repeated with a gentle push. My girl only dug her pink cheeks deeper into my side as she nervously twisted the edge of my sleeve in her small fist.
The cashier looked down at my daughter, her expression showing a little concern. "My daughter thinks your hair is beautiful." I explained.
The cashier's face lit up. "You do?" This led my little one out of her hiding place. She looked up and nodded.
"Thank you so much! You made my day," the cashier said with a smile brilliant enough to compete with her highlights. My daughter returned it with a shining smile of her own.
As I walked out of the store, holding my daughter's hand, I stole a glance back at the young woman. Her energy was clearly brighter now than it had been when we first entered her line.
After loading my groceries in the trunk, I climbed into the driver's seat. It was then that my daughter made a declaration, "Mom, I think I'm going to start telling everyone when I like their hair." "You should, honey." And she did. She still does.
It's a rare occasion if we make a trip out in public without her telling someone that she loves their hair, or nails, or shirt, or shoes. To be honest, I think she even does so more than me. And it's one of my favorite things about this girl. She learned, at a very young age, that by simply telling people when you see beauty in them, you can draw out the beauty of human connection.
When Tina Sorg first saw the robot rolling through her supermarket, she thought, "That thing is a little weird." Programmed to detect spills and rubbish in the passages, the robot looked like a printer with a long neck. "It needed personality," said Ms. Sorg, 55, who manages the store's beer and wine department.
So, during one overnight shift, she went out to a nearby arts and craft store, brought back a large pair of googly eyes (塑料眼睛) and, when no one was looking, fixed them on the top of the robot.
The eyes were a hit with managers at her grocery company Ahold Delhaize. They are now a standard feature on the company's nearly 500 robots across the United States.
How this supermarket robot got its funny eyes touches on a serious question: Will robots with friendly faces and cute names help people feel good about devices that are taking over an increasing amount of human work?
Robots are now working everywhere from factories to living rooms. But the introduction of robots to public settings like the grocery store is increasing new fears that humans are being pushed out of jobs. McKinsey, the consulting (咨询) firm, says the grocers could immediately reduce "the pool of labor hours" by as much as 65% if they adopted all the automation technology currently available
Still, most of the retail (零售的) robots have just enough human qualities to make them appear friendly but not too many to suggest they are replacing humans completely.
"There is never going to be this great disaster of job loss," said Peter Hancock, a professor at the University of Central Florida who has studied the history of automation. Throughout history, Hancock added, workers have attacked technologies when they feel threatened, like the 19th-century Luddites, who destroyed machinery in cloth factories. "If you push too hard, too far, people transfer their anger to the technology, and they protest," he noted.
Search online "work too much" and you'll get screenfuls of information about the harmful medical, mental and social consequences of spending too much time on the job. However, under current circumstances, the old saying "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." should be "makes Jack a dead boy."
A latest study by W.H.O. says that working 55 or more hours a week is a "serious health risk." It estimates that long working hours led to 745,000 deaths worldwide in 2016, a 29 percent increase over 2000. Men accounted for 72 percent of the deaths; the worst concentrations were in the Western Pacific and Southeast Asia, and particularly among 60-to 79-year-olds who had worked long hours after the age of 45.
These figures make long working hours the biggest work-related health risk of all. Risk of a stroke rises by 35 percent and of deadly heart disease by 17 percent for those who can't or won't stop working, compared with people who work 35 to 40 hours a week.
The pandemic, and especially remote work, has created new opportunities to work too hard. The W.H.O. director-general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, noted that teleworking has blurred the line between work and home and that people who have survived layoffs (裁员) at struggling businesses have ended up working longer hours. One survey found an overwhelming majority of American employees have shortened, postponed or canceled vacations during the pandemic.
The red flags about overwork have been waving for years all around the world. Exhaustion has been identified as a factor in industrial disasters like the BP oil refinery explosion in Texas City in 2005 and the nuclear accident at Three Mile Island. In Japan, long working hours are so common that "karoshi," translated as "death by overwork," is a legally recognized cause of death.
So, working less is a matter of life and death, isn't it?
Most of us want to be a person of courage. We often think only a few people can truly practice it, but each day offers us a chance, and each one of us should grasp that chance to be courageous. Without courage, we can't practice any other virtue consistently.
To stand up against the opposition even when you are the only one. To do what is right even if the consequences are severe.
Courage is what an ordinary woman, Rosa Parks, displayed in 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, when she refused to give up her bus seat to a white man. Her courage and her arrest that followed launched the Montgomery bus boycott and became a historical moment in the civil rights movement.
For example. I will never forget the courage of a young mother I prayed with in the hospital. She was battling terminal cancer and refused to give up for the sake of her small children. She fought hard until the end. Or, at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in New York, my friend, a nurse who pushed through her fears to care for the infected. And then there was the small business owner I knew who became depressed and had a hard time managing his business. But every day he found the courage to get up from his bed, pray and read his handwritten note listing all the good things in his life.
Author Mary Anne Rademacher writes, " Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saving. 'I will try again tomorrow,'" When all is said and done, each of us can be a person of courage—now more than ever.
A. Courage does not always roar.
B. We tend to underestimate the power of courage
C. Actually, courage is the most important of all the virtues.
D. Courage is the silver bullet to help us succeed in life.
E. Courage is the strength to do something even if you are afraid.
F. Every day she stepped into the danger zone where patients struggled to live.
G. While we might not be in such a position, we can all be courageous facing challenges.
My parents, siblings and I took our first camping trip to the Lake Houston Wilderness Park recently.
We had finished putting up the 1 when it suddenly started to rain. Luckily, we had 2 our tent on a high flat ground where water could not pour in. Mom got some snacks and drinks ready for us while we played games and 3 about our daily life, which made wet-weather camping fun. How 4 it was camping under the sound of the rain! We were gathered around in the center of 5 and it was a nice feeling. Even with the rain, I had never been so 6.
The rain died down before dark and the sky turned clear. Soon, Mom 7 a big meal over the fire for the family. I sensed that a hot meal and good 8 would warm us right up. While we ate together, Dad 9 at the stars and told us about his childhood. As we laughed and 10 on our days, the stars shone like diamonds at night.
The following day, we had a good time 11 the rocky trails around our campsite. 12 hiking in the forest, we had a lovely late afternoon boating. It was amazing to see the 13 changing rays of the sunset behind the pine trees. That evening we packed up our 14 and headed home.
I am very grateful for this camping trip, which has left us unforgettable 15.
The National Art Gallery, located at the heart of Canberra, Australia, is must to visit. The architecture of the gallery itself is (impress) and unique. Many types of paintings are separately on display based on the painters' country of origin. It is roughly estimated there are at least a thousand paintings in the gallery. It even has a special room paintings by art students are exhibited. The quality and the imagination of the young painters are also extraordinary.
Among all those exhibits, the aboriginal (土著的) paintings are the most (strike). There is a sad history surrounding the natives of Australia. In the 19th century, when white (settler) came to Australia, most of the children of the aboriginals (take) away from their own parents and brought up by white parents. Some of the paintings express this theme, which could move visitors to tears.
During holidays, the gallery is always crowded parents and their children. It is amazing to see small children (appreciate) such abstract paintings.
The National Art Gallery is (true) an attraction worth visiting.
There I was stuck AGAIN. This was the same feeling that overwhelms me every year. But this year it was different, because if I failed this exam I would not graduate. I sat there, panic stricken, unable to move. Pressure crushed in on me. What if I could not go to high school? Would Dad and Mum kick me out of their house?
I took two deep breaths and looked up. I could see the teacher pacing up and down. The classroom was dead silent except for the clock. Tick Tock. Tick Tock. I checked the clock for the third time. Ten minutes left! I clenched (握紧) and unclenched my fist in an attempt to calm myself. Think! I told myself. I knew I could do this. My hand couldn't help trembling. Then I scribbled (胡乱写下) the first few words that hit me.
"It isn't my fault..."
I stared blankly at those words. At the comer of my eye, I could see my teacher walking towards me. She was checking on our progress! Dread built up within me. Then, I glanced at the four words again. Without any warning, my hand moved to write.
Hair on my arms stood as the teacher leaned in and started to read my work. I peered over to see my teacher's expression, praying that my work had not brought in disappointment. To my astonishment, she displayed a clear satisfaction! That was good, wasn't it? I hurriedly looked down at my essay.
I skimmed it through. I felt proud. Now, there's something I was still worried about. I checked the clock. Two minutes left! I was still writing!
I bit my lip, took a deep breath, and concentrated on writing. I heard the teacher leave.
"There's one minute left. Please check your work." the teacher reminded us.
注意：
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好。
Paragraph 1:
"One minute left?" I exclaimed.
Paragraph 2:
A week later, the teacher handed the papers back to us.
